Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1887-04-02
THE STATE OF TRADE.
UNPRECEDENTED SNOW AND BAD ROADS
RETARD MOVEMENT.
Big Business the Past Month-Ths Interstate
Commerce Act and COBjecturss IS to lis
Efsets-0ollapse Of the Ccal Oombi-
nati0n-Gsnsral News.

New YORK, April l.-R. G. Dan & Co.,
in their weekly trade review, say: with
three inches of snow in Virginia, the roads
in many sections almost impossible, and
Canada railroads bloc ked by drifts, distri-
button of produce is difficult. But for
the extraordinary demand to anticipate
the Interstate act and its change of rates
this retarding weather would have been
more seriously felt As it is dry goods
and boot and shoe dealers complain that
from regions buried in snow small orders
come for summer clothing, and deep mud
and bad roads in many States arrest move
ments of produce. Business
THE PAST MONTH
has been remarkably large, not only at
at New York and Boston. Chicago re.
ports phenomenal trade and other cities as
well. Largely this business has been in
anticipation of demands for sixty days to
come or more. Hence it is scarcely possi-
BILE that noteworthy unreasonable reac-
tion should not be felt The opinion
grows that the Interstate act
WILL HELP RAILROADS RATHER THAN
COMMERCE.
Its evident tendency is to cause lower
charges on local traffic, which is smaller
and higher charges on long through traffic,
which, for important roads, is larger.
Neither uncertainty nor activity in mar
kets, under such circumstances, indicates
much for the future
Wheat has risen over one cent, with
sales of 45, 000,0 900 bushels for the week,
exports are continuing heavy. Corn, oats,
oil and pork products, sugar and tea have
scarcely changed with moderate dealings.
Coffee advanced One-qnarter. Cattle and
wool are weaker, with tin and copper.
Cotton has doomed, with sales of ,09S, 200
bales at New York in six days. Print
cloths are barely 3.39c, with only 10000
pieces in sight. Iron is weaker at Phila-
delphia and Pittsburg
COLLtPSE OF THE COAL COMBINATION,
and higher and fixed rates for transport
ing coal do not encourage consumers
Whether bank clearing outside of New
York, ranging lSG per cent above last
year, indicates more than temporary
cannot yet be judged. But the great re-
ductiOn.. of rates on Canadian canals for
shipments to Canadian ports, and the at
titude of the Grand Trunk toward other
trunk lines, foreshadow sharper compe-
tition between Canadian and New York
forwarding merchants, as other new ar
rangements indicate manufacturing de-
velopment in Canada. With April settle
ments over, large amounts of money usu-
ally return hither, and this year the
amount at Boston has been usual divi-
dends payable there reaching ST., GG2, Ois,
against 81, 06l, 10 last year.
Money has ranged from ; TO per cent.
for the week, but operations TO cause
stringency will now he increasingly diff
cult every day, unless an unusual outgo
of money should set in, as in 1884, in place
of the return customary in April.
FAILURES
during the first quarter of 1887 were small
Ter in ~ than 'S6, 'S5 or "a, but the ag-
gregate of liabilities was larger than last
year. Not because of general enlarging
ofindebtedness, but because of few un-
usually heavy failures were included.
Failures in the last seven days number,
for the United States, 1876; Canada, 81;
total, 223, with 90 last week and PA the
corresponding week Of last year.